A new poll from the respected Pew Research Center finds a majority of the public wants the Senate to act on President Barack Obama’s upcoming Supreme Court nominee. It also found most of Obama’s foes don’t want hearings no matter who he nominates. And the poll also finds conservatives and Republicans on the losing end of the poll: most Democrats and independent voters want the hearings to go forward.
In the high-stakes battle over replacing Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court, a majority of Americans (56%) say the Senate should hold hearings and vote on President Obama’s choice to fill the vacancy. About four-in-ten (38%) say the Senate should not hold hearings until the next president selects a court nominee.
Most of those who want the Senate to hold off consideration of a Supreme Court nominee say they would not change their minds about this, regardless of whom Obama selects to replace Scalia. About a quarter of the public (26%) favors the Senate delaying action on the court vacancy, and say they would not be swayed from this view no matter whom Obama nominates. 2-22-2016 2-56-24 PMJust 10% of the public favors holding off action on the court vacancy, but say they may change their minds, depending on whom Obama nominates.Two-thirds of Republicans (66%) – including 71% of conservative Republicans – say the Senate should not hold hearings on Scalia’s replacement until the next president selects a nominee. An even larger share of Democrats (79%) say the Senate should hold hearings and vote on whomever Obama nominates; among liberal Democrats, fully 85% express this view.
AND:
Across most demographic and partisan groups, most of those who favor delaying action on the Supreme Court vacancy say they would not change their minds regardless of whom Obama nominates.
Among conservative Republicans, for example, 71% say the Senate should not hold hearings until the next president nominates a Supreme Court justice – and 51% say they would not change their minds depending on whom Obama nominates. Just 18% of conservative Republicans say they may change their minds, depending on whom Obama chooses for the court.
The poll also breaks down opinion in various demographic groups. But the bottom line importance of this poll is:
It shows the ideological and partisan inflexibility on Obama getting the right to name a Supreme Court Justice. Talking Points correctly notes that the Supreme Court snub is the ultimate delegitimization of the country’s first black President.
And the poll gives credence to those Republicans who are nervous because nixing Obama a chance to get a fair hearing from the Senate on his appointee could anger enough voters to flip the Senate to the Democrats. The polls show that Republicans and conservatives are out on a shaky limb on this one. But they don’t seem to care: the thirst for ideological purity and hatred of Barack Obama overrides keeping control of the Senate. Democrats will be able to point to the hearings as proof that the Republican led Senate has been an obstructionist one.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.